Friends Attending

Description

Nuclear power has been and still is a controversial topic. The radioactive effluent from the reprocessing plant in Sellafield, the unsolved problem of radioactive waste and most importantly the widespread contamination in the wake of the Chernobyl and Fukushima Dai-ichi accidents at nuclear power stations together with the potential impact on personal health led to scepticism and rejection of nuclear power, with some countries like Germany, Switzerland and Italy phasing out nuclear power from their energy mix.The increased awareness of man-made climate change, however, has led to a resurgence of nuclear power as an option to provide a stable, reliable electricity supply, not only in the UK, but in many other parts of the world.The presentation will introduce the concept of nuclear power and its associated risks, before highlighting the presenters personal work in Japan’s Fukushima province after the nuclear accident in 2011 and leading on to the promises and threats associated with electricity generation by nuclear energy.

About the speaker:

Dr Bjoern Seitz is a senior lecturer in nuclear physics at the University of Glasgow. He became interested in nuclear power in the wake of the Chernobyl accident which led to his choice of study and specialism. He splits his research time between understanding the fundamental strong interaction and the development of radiation sensors for applications on medicine and nuclear decommissioning. His expertise led to a field trip assessing radioactive contamination around Fukushima city and enabling the local universities in operating radiation sensors.

This is event is free to attend, although we will be asking for donations at the end of the talk. Participants are under no obligation whatsoever to donate, however please rest assured that the money we collect doesn't end up in anyone's pocket - it is used to fund our overhead costs, and travel/accommodation for our speakers who come from further afield.

Accessibility: As per the policy of the Admiral Bar, access to the venue “can only be provided to patrons who are sufficiently mobile and capable of independently evacuating premises, or with the minimum of assistance”. Unfortunately, this leaves the basement inaccessible to most wheelchair users.